AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF. Ashley Danielle Messner for the Master of Science Degree. In Biological Sciences presented on 9 April 2015

AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF Ashley Danielle Messner for the Master of Science Degree In Biological Sciences presented on 9 April 2015 Title: ENERGY ALLOCATION AFTER CAUDAL AUTOTOMY IN THE GREAT PLAINS SKINK, PLESTIODON OBSOLETUS Abstract approved: Dr. Lynnette Sievert Caudal autotomy is a common anti-predatory defense among certain species of reptiles, amphibians, and mice. Studies have investigated the consequences of caudal autotomy in reference to locomotion and reproduction, but few studies have focused on how other factors may influence the regrowth of the tail. This study investigated caudal autotomy in the Great Plains skink, Plestiodon obsoletus, and how diet influenced energy allocation after caudal autotomy. Skinks were divided into size classes, three skinks per class with no greater than three mm difference in snout to vent length, and then divided into three treatment groups; fed crickets daily, fed crickets every other day, and a daily diet alternating between crickets and mealworm larvae. After the nine week study period, I found that diet and size class were not significant factors for tail regrowth, but diet and size class had a significant impact on the mass gained. A comparison of the three smallest and largest size classes for snout to vent length was significant for length gained, but could have been attributed to normal somatic growth. Mass was gained in every diet and

size class, showing enough food was provided to exceed the amount needed to survive, however, the rate of tail regeneration may have been at its maximum. Energy was allocated differently among size classes and treatment after caudal autotomy. Key words: Plestiodon obsoletus, Great Plains skink, caudal autotomy, tail autotomy, diet, energy, regrowth, tail

ENERGY ALLOCATION AFTER CAUDAL AUTOTOMY IN THE GREAT PLAINS SKINK, PLESTIODON OBSOLETUS A thesis presented to The Department of Biological Sciences EMPORIA STATE UNIVERSITY In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science By Ashley Danielle Messner May 2015

ii Approved by the Department Chair Dr. Yixin Eric Yang Approved by Thesis Advisor Dr. Lynnette M. Sievert Approved by Committee Member Dr. Melissa Bailey Approved by Committee Member Dr. Dwight Moore Approved by the Dean of the Graduate School and Distance Education Dr. Kathy Ermler

iii ACKOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Dr. Lynnette Sievert for helping me through the thesis process from start to finish, providing ideas, planning, and helping edit my thesis paper. Also, I d like to thank Dr. Sievert for letting me borrow her laboratory space, and more equipment than I even have room to write about in this section. Next, I would like to thank my husband, Justin Messner, for being there every step of the way through this project. He helped me collect every time we went into the field, and with husbandry of the skinks at Emporia State University (ESU). He was always there to encourage me, and for coming to my rescue when I misplace a skink behind an unmovable cabinet. Additionally, none of this would have been possible without huge help from Andrew Coleman, Maya McElfish, and Emma Pauly-Hubbard and their amazing skink collecting skills. Thank you for coming out with me early in the morning during your precious summer vacation time. Also, I thank Mitch Rens, Jared White, and Dr. Dwight Moore for also bringing in skinks for me. All skinks were collected with permission from the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (permit number SC-120-2014). I thank Roger Ferguson for helping take down cabinet doors in my lab, a job not made easy on a stool that was not approved by OSHA. I thank Maya McElfish for feeding my skinks in my absence, but also catching several of my escapees as she always seemed to walk by at the perfect moments. I thank Greg Sievert and Dr. Lynnette Sievert for showing me the art of catching bugs at night. Thanks to my parents, Ken and Yvonne Remmick, for providing more than enough newspaper for husbandry, which will be available for many other projects to come, and support throughout this entire process. Thank you to my committee members, Dr. Lynnette Sievert, Dr. Melissa Bailey, and Dr.

iv Dwight Moore for assistance through my thesis. Thank you ESU Department of Biological Sciences for providing space and materials, ESU Graduate School for the grant and funding part of this project, and ESU Animal Care and Use Committee for allowing housing and experimentation of the skinks (ESU-ACUC-14-003).

v PREFACE This manuscript will follow the format of the peer-reviewed journal Copeia.

vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.. iii PREFACE.. v TABLE OF CONTENTS.. vi LIST OF FIGURES. vii INTRODUCTION. 1 METHODS... 5 RESULTS.. 8 DISCUSSION.. 10 LITERATURE CITED 27 APPENDICES... 33 PERMISSION TO COPY STATEMENT... 36

vii LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1: Mean ±SE of skink tail regrowth by blocks. Each block contains three skinks. Block one has the shortest snout vent length and block 12 has the longest. Half of each skink tail was removed and regrowth was measured after nine weeks. Refer to appendices. 15 Figure 2: Mean ±SE of tail regrowth of treatments. Each treatment had 12 skinks. Half of each skink tail was removed and regrowth was measured after nine weeks. Treatment labels are as follows, CMD= Crickets Mealworm Larvae Daily, CD= Crickets Daily, CEOD= Crickets Every Other Day... 17 Figure 3: Mean ±SE of mass gained by blocks. Each block contains three skinks. Block one has the shortest snout vent length and block 12 has the longest. Half of each skink tail was removed and mass was measured after nine weeks. Refer to appendices 19 Figure 4. Mean ±SE of mass gained per treatment. Each treatment contained 12 skinks. Half of each skink tail was removed and mass was measured after nine weeks. Treatment labels are as follows, CMD= Crickets Mealworm Larvae Daily, CD= Crickets Daily, CEOD= Crickets Every Other Day... 21

viii Figure 5: Mean ±SE of snout vent length growth by treatment. Each treatment had 12 skinks. Half of each skink tail was removed and snout vent length was measured after nine weeks. Treatment labels are as follows, CMD= Crickets Mealworm Larvae Daily, CD= Crickets Daily, CEOD= Crickets Every Other Day. 23 Figure 6: Mean ±SE of snout vent length growth of smallest and largest size class blocks. Each block contains three skinks. Block one has the shortest snout vent length and block 12 has the longest. Blocks 10 and 12 had no growth in snout vent length. Half of each skink tail was removed and snout vent length growth was measured after nine weeks. Refer to appendices. 25

1 Introduction Autotomy is the voluntary release of an appendage. Caudal autotomy is the ability to shed a tail, which often happens as an anti-predator response. Caudal autotomy can be a distraction that keeps a predator occupied as the dropped tail wriggles around, or if the predator already had the individual s tail, it could allow time for the individual to escape (Bateman and Fleming, 2009; Kelehear and Webb, 2006). Many species, including different types of lizards, amphibians, fishes, crustaceans, echinoderms, insects, and spiders, have the ability to autotomize parts of their bodies (Maginnis, 2006). Numerous studies have been performed on caudal autotomy, but they have focused on aspects concerning reproduction, behavior, locomotion, agility, and the physiology behind the ability to shed and regrow a tail. Caudal autotomy may affect reproductive behavior by reducing litter size, although there has been conflicting information concerning the relationship between caudal autotomy and egg mass and energy content (Chapple et al., 2002). For Texas banded geckos (Coleonyx brevis), tailless females produced eggs lower in mass and energy content. Conversely, with the common side-blotched lizard (Uta stansburiana), tailless females produced heavier hatchlings than tailed females (Dial and Fitzpatrick, 1981; Fox and McCoy, 2000). Animal behavior after caudal autotomy changes as the individuals tend to stay closer to cover, flee further distances away from approaching predators, make fewer attempts on prey items, and decrease overall surface area time (Cooper, 2003). For aquatic species, swimming burst speed decreases 40-50% (Marvin, 2010). Terrestrial sprint speeds, such as for the five-lined skink (Plestiodon fasciatus), are initially reduced but can be recovered several weeks after autotomy (Chapple et al., 2004; Goodman, 2006). Species

2 with the ability to jump are not negatively impacted as the jump distance is not decreased after caudal autotomy (Fleming and Bateman, 2012). And lastly, the physiology associated with shedding and regrowing a tail involves many aspects, including increases in lactic acid after autotomy that are not associated with LDH concentrations, and elevated lipid levels in regenerated tails (Meyer et al., 2002; Simou et al., 2008). Even with all this information, very little data is available on how the environment and nutrition may affect the ability of an individual to actually regrow its tail. For example, it has been noted that hydra heads can regenerate faster in warmer climates, but that nutrition can also alter the rate of regeneration (Dinsmore, 1996). For lizards, which are ectothermic, their body temperature and diet dictate their physiology as well as their behavior (Huey and Stevenson, 1979). Although caudal autotomy has its benefits, there is a high energy price to the individual. Some species of salamanders and lizards store excess energy in the tail, in the form of lipids, for future use. A study by Chapple and Swain (2002) showed the metallic skink (Niveoscincus metallicus) had a high probability of lipid depletion once its tail was autotomized, but there was rarely a large enough loss in lipid storage to be lethal. Most tail breaks occurred at fraction planes along the tail, but not at the base, and did not affect essential locomotory muscles, hemipenes in males, or the centralized areas of lipid storage. The loss of the lipid storage did not equate to an increase in food consumption in the reproductive female metallic skinks. However, in the Texas banded gecko (Coleonyx brevis), tailless reproductive females had a greater rate of food ingestion and, therefore, more energy available for reproduction, but they did not allocate that energy into their eggs but instead into the recovery of their tail (Dial and Fitzpatrick, 1981). The loss of

3 lipid storage, as well as the loss of a defense mechanism, decreases an individual s fitness and can be associated to shortening an individual s life span (Bernardo and Agosta, 2005; Cooper and Frederick, 2010). A study by Qun et al. (2008) investigated the selected body temperature and food intake for Mongolian racerunners (Eremia argus) from three populations. They autotomized the lizards tails to investigate how food and temperature preference had changed since the autotomy of their tails. The tailless lizards preferred a lower body temperature, which suggests the loss of the tail may have changed the thermoregulation set-point. They also noted that despite the increased energy demand placed on the tailless lizards, which were fed ad libitum, they did not consume more food than lizards with their tails intact. But there was no investigation of how size classes could have contributed to the consumption of food. Caudal autotomy not only results in a loss of a lipid storage, but also may require a shift in energy allocation to regrow the lost appendage. Energy demands and allocation differ between stages of development, and autotomy may result in various physiological constraints (Bateman and Fleming, 2009; Paulissen, 1987). The tail regeneration rates among age classes in the black-bellied salamander (Desmognathus quadramaculatus) showed that the larger the individual, the longer the regeneration period (Marvin, 2011). This has been attributed to the need for juveniles to regrow their tail as quickly as possible, because they lack other anti-predatory options compared to larger individuals, who also allocate energy into reproduction (Marvin, 2011). A juvenile lizard will have to allocate energy into the tail as well as into somatic growth (Bateman and Fleming, 2009).

4 Overall, the diet of lizards can consist of a variety of vertebrates, invertebrates, and plants. The nutrition value received from different sources in their diet can play numerous roles in how growth takes place and its energy demands (Pough, 1973). Energy is allocated differently through the ontogeny of an individual (Mautz and Nagy, 1987; Pough, 1973), but how does the diet influence energy allocation after caudal autotomy? This study focused on the energy allocation of Great Plains skinks (Plestidon obsoletus) after caudal autotomy by investigating how diet affected the regeneration rate of the tail, body mass, and body length. Great Plains skinks are one of the largest lizards in the United States and have a fairly large geographic range of southwestern states into Mexico, but are readily found in the Flint Hills of Kansas (Fitch, 1955). For this study, specimens were divided into separate treatments, each with different diets, to determine if one type of food source and diet caused more average tail growth. I predict skinks fed at a higher rate will regenerate more of their tails, and have greater body masses and body lengths by the end of the study, than those fed at a lower rate.

5 Materials and Methods Collection Sites. Great Plains Skinks (Plestiodon obsoletus) were collected between May and July 2014. A total of 19 skinks were collected from Greenwood County, Kansas (Lat. 38.08759, Long. -96.37950), 17 skinks were collected at Chase County Fishing Lake (Chase County, Kansas Lat. 38.36718, Long. -96.59135), and two skinks were collected from the Emporia State University (ESU) Ross Natural History Reservation (Lat. 38.49504, Long. -96.33568). All sites were visited in early morning hours, and all individuals were obtained by hand and transported to the laboratory in vented plastic tennis ball containers with one skink per container. Housing. All skinks were housed individually at the ESU Biology department in Emporia, KS in a ventilated enclosure. The most common enclosure was a Reptibreeze open-aired reptile screen cage (40.64 x 40.64 x 50.8 cm) and the second most common enclosure was a Sterilite plastic container (41.9 x 33.0 x 31.1 cm) with ventilated cover. All enclosures had a newspaper lined floor, an Exo Terra reptile cave or PVC pipe for the skinks to hide under or sit upon, and a water bowl. The newspaper was changed on a weekly basis and the water daily. Heating lamps, 60W for Reptibreeze open-aired reptile screen cage and 40W for Sterilite plastic container, were set atop the enclosures with timers set for a 12 hr photoperiod beginning at 0800 CDT. Every skink was allowed to freely thermoregulate, as well as consume water ad libitum.

6 Design. I used a randomized block design in the experiment. Each individual was measured for total body length (mm), snout vent length (mm) and total body mass (g). Each lizard was then placed into blocks of three individuals based upon snout vent length, with each block having no more than three mm total difference in snout vent lengths. Since the snout vent lengths of all individuals ranged from 66 mm to 114 mm, which was enough difference to create size classes, individuals needed to be blocked together by size to keep larger or smaller individuals together throughout the study (Appendix A; Appendix B). The skinks in every block were then divided into three treatment groups. The first group was fed three large crickets (Gryllodes sigillatus) every other day. The second group was fed three large crickets every day. The third group was fed a mixed diet of three large crickets or two medium mealworm larvae (Tenebrio molitor), alternating between the food sources every other day. There were three treatments of 12 blocks, creating a total of 36 skinks used in the experiment. The experiment was conducted for nine weeks from July through September 2014, which coincides with their active season (Fitch, 1955). After the study period, the skinks were released where they were collected. Caudal Autotomy. Each skink autotomized approximately half of its tail. This was done by holding each skink s tail with a padded forceps at the midpoint and allowing the lizard to autotomize its own tail (Gillis et al., 2009). The tail was held for one minute, and if the skink did not autotomize its tail, the tail was released to allow the skink a resting period. If the tail was not autotomized after several attempts, the process was repeated several hours later. Once autotomized, the dropped tail section was measured and weighed.

7 Feeding and Measurements. Each meal was weighed prior to a feeding. The three crickets weighed between 0.5-1.0 g and the mealworms weighed between 0.15-0.25 g. The feeding range was setup for the crickets and mealworms due to the variability between the sizes acquired from purchase orders, and because the insects generally grew larger in size in captivity. The mealworms were calorically equivalent to the crickets based on published values (Bernard et al., 1997; Van Huis et al., 2013). The amount of food consumed by each skink, and any uneaten food that was present after 24 hrs, was documented. The skinks were measured weekly for tail regrowth (mm). At the end of the study period, each individual was measured for total length (mm), snout vent length (mm) and weight (g). The data were analyzed using a two-way ANOVA (Analysis of Variance) without replication, and randomized block design with significance set to α=0.05. The diet data of crickets and mealworm larvae consumed by each lizard were analyzed using a one-way ANOVA. All statistics were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (IMB, Armonk, NY) The assumptions of an ANOVA were checked for homogeneity of variances and normal distribution of the data.

8 Results The two-way ANOVA without replication showed no significant effect for tail regeneration for block factor, F=1.346, df=11,21, p=0.268 (Fig. 1), and no significant effect for treatment, F=4.417, df=2,21, p=0.928 (Fig. 2). Neither diet nor size class significantly influenced tail regrowth. The two-way ANOVA without replication showed significant effect for mass gained for block factor, F=2.523, df=11,22, p=0.031 (Fig. 3), and significant effect for treatment, F=40.017, df=2,22, p=0.000 (Fig. 4). Diet and size class significantly influenced mass gained. Tukey s post hoc test (α=0.05) was significant for each treatment, concerning mass gained, with p=0.002 or less. The two-way ANOVA without replication showed no significant effect for snout to vent growth for block factor, F=1.679, df=11,22, p=0.145, and no significant effect for treatment, F=1.331, df=2,22, p=0.285 (Fig. 5). But, focusing the results to the three largest and three smallest size classes, a significance occurred for block factor, F=24.523, df=5,10, p=0.000 (Fig. 6), but not for treatment, F=1.315, df=2,10, p=0.311. The smallest lizards allocated resources into snout to vent length growth and the largest lizards did not. The one-way ANOVAs of the mass of food eaten by each lizard within each treatment group were not significant. Therefore, the amount of food eaten by lizards within a treatment group did not change over time. The treatment of crickets every other day showed no significance for the variance of cricket masses, F=0.767, df=11,360, p=0.673; crickets every day showed no significance for the variance of cricket masses, F=1.336, df=10,671, p=0.207; and mixed diet showed no significance among the cricket

9 masses, F=0.482, df=11,360, p=0.914 or among the mealworm larvae masses, F=0.504, df=10,308, p=0.887. Each individual compared against all three treatments also showed no significant effect. F=0.154, df=2,33, p=0.858. The variability in the diet mass sizes throughout the study was not a significant factor in this study.

10 Discussion Based on the collected data, the Great Plains skinks did allocate energy to increase their mass, snout vent length, and autotomized tail, but not all of it was significant between treatments and/or blocks. Growth was expected in overall lengths (tail and snout/vent), and mass, with the different treatments causing varying amounts of growth. The prediction was that the group fed crickets every day would have the highest growth, the group with a mixed diet of crickets and mealworm larvae would have less growth, and the group with crickets every other day would have the least growth. Individuals given crickets every day were expected to have the greatest growth because crickets contain more protein than mealworm larvae, and in return, mealworm larvae contain more fat than crickets (Bernard et al., 1997; Van Huis et al., 2013). Protein is a significant factor on the growth and most lizard species need a diet containing 11-20% protein. Lipids consumed in food are put into fat storage and then used to provide energy in the future (Aiello and Moses, 2011). Avery et al. (1993) studied slider turtles (Trachemays scripta) and showed that individuals consuming a high crude protein diet had significantly greater plastron length, carapace length and body mass. Of all the treatments, those fed crickets every other day would have the least growth because of the restriction to their diet when compared to the other treatments. All individuals, regardless of diet or size class, had tail growth, but there was not a significant difference between the treatments or size classes. Diet influences growth rate in reptiles (Avery et al., 1993; Nagy, 2000; Li et al., 2009), but there must be a maximum tail regeneration rate and the lizards in this study may have been at or near that maximal growth rate. The regeneration of the tail is energetically very expensive,

11 especially to adults. For adults in the Genus Eumeces (= Plestiodon), the tail contains 50% of the body s lipids (Vitt and Cooper, 1986). The negative consequences of tail autotomy on reproduction can include a reduced clutch size, with eggs lower in mass and energy content (Dial and Fitzpatrick, 1981). Breeding of Great Plains skinks in Kansas occurs from April into early June, and eggs are laid from June into early August (Fitch, 1955). Juvenile skink somatic growth is not effected by tail autotomy, but autotomy could have consequences for a reproductive adult (Vitt and Cooper, 1986). This study was conducted in early fall, after breeding and egg laying seasons, which is an energetically expensive period for reproduction. A study done on female Texas banded geckos (Coleonyx brevis) showed that 53% of the total energy reserves were invested into vitellogenesis of tailed individuals and only 29% in tailless individuals (Dial and Fitzpatrick, 1981). If this study occurred in early spring when reproduction was in full swing, the additional restriction on the energy reserves could have resulted in different energy allocations for the breeding size classes in this study where less energy may have been allocated to regenerating the tail. Concerning tail regeneration, plenty of nutrients were available from the treatments, no matter the size class, for there to be allocation to tail regeneration. Conversely, mass gained among size classes and treatments was significant. From the treatments, the most mass gained was in the treatment order of crickets every day, mixed diet of crickets and mealworm larvae, and crickets every other day. Tukey s post hoc test (α=0.05) was significant for each treatment with p=0.002 or less. It was not surprising that the mass gained from the treatment with crickets every day was more than the treatment of crickets every other day, the caloric intake was doubled over the nine

12 week study period between the treatments. Cox et al. (2008) studied Yarrow s Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus jarrovii) and found that those who consumed one cricket a day versus three crickets a day showed a significant reduction in growth. The mixed diet treatment contained more crude fat whereas the daily cricket treatment contained more crude protein while staying calorically equivalent (Bernard et al., 1997; Van Huis et al., 2013). Protein allows for additional muscle mass and weight gain compared to crude fat (Atti et al., 2004). Mass gained among size classes occurred with the most mass gained by the smaller size classes and the least amount gained by the larger size classes (Fig. 3). Growth is associated with nutritional stress, quality, and availability, the less available the slower the growth (Arendt, 1997; Vitt and Caldwell, 2014). Troyer (1984) established that metabolic rates of green iguana (Iguana iguana) were proportional to body mass, as hatchling and juveniles had higher energy requirements and needed more protein than adults for somatic growth, while adults needed protein for maintenance. The individuals in the smaller size classes were utilizing all the nutrients, including protein, available for growth, mass and length, even though the standard metabolic rate rises 36% for recently autotomized tailed lizards (Naya et al., 2007). Skinks from each treatment were consuming the same amount of food, but it is apparent the larger size classes did not use nutrients in the same way as the smaller individuals. Smaller lizards grew despite the demand of a higher metabolic rate, with an allometry where body mass is raised to the 0.80 power, resulting in a reduction of mass-specific energetic requirements for larger individuals (Bennett and Dawson, 1976). But a lizard that is twice the size of a small individual still needs to consume more energy.

13 The growth in snout vent length between the largest and smallest size classes was also significant, but could be attributed to somatic growth. Growth after maturity has been documented in many species of squamate reptiles (Shine and Charnov, 1992). All individuals in the three smallest size classes would be classified as juveniles based on the snout vent length of under 100 mm, and all individuals in the three largest size classes would be classified as adults for their snout vent length being over 100 mm (Fitch, 1955). In two of the largest size classes there was no documented snout vent growth, as the mean growth was 0.56mm ± 0.56 mm. Whereas juvenile Great Plains skinks have been documented to grow 6-10 mm snout to vent length in a four week period (Fitch, 1955), the smallest three size classes had a mean snout vent length growth of 7.44mm ± 0.44 mm. In this study, diet was not a limiting factor in tail regeneration after tail autotomy for any size Great Plains skink since all skinks grew in mass. A range of nutrients were available to each skink, which would result in regrowth of the autotomized tail assuming the tail is broken properly along a fracture plane (Abdel-Karim, 1993). Diet influenced the amount of mass gained. I did not determine whether the mass gained was muscle or fat, only that additional mass was established. In general, the smaller the individual the more mass gained, which could be attributed to allocating resources for somatic growth to reach maturity. Sexual maturity of the Great Plains skink occurs at a snout vent length of at least 100 mm, in which over half of the experimental skinks would have been considered sexually mature (Fitch, 1955; Appendix A). Diet also influenced the amount of mass gained based on treatments, showing that nutritional availability and consumption will influence mass. The significant difference in the snout vent length

14 growth among the smallest and largest size classes can also be attributed to differences in how resources are allocated at different times throughout a skink s lifespan. Juveniles used resources to gain in snout to vent length whereas adults did not. All size groups and treatment groups allocated energy to tail regeneration and increased mass.

15 Fig. 1. Mean ±SE of skink tail regrowth by blocks. Each block contains three skinks. Block one has the shortest snout vent length and block 12 has the longest. Half of each skink tail was removed and regrowth was measured after nine weeks. Refer to appendices.

Tail Regrowth (mm) 16 50 p=0.268 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Size Block

17 Fig. 2. Mean ±SE of tail regrowth of treatments. Each treatment had 12 skinks. Half of each skink tail was removed and regrowth was measured after nine weeks. Treatment labels are as follows, CMD= Crickets Mealworm Larvae Daily, CD= Crickets Daily, CEOD= Crickets Every Other Day.

Tail Regrowth (mm) 18 35 p=0.928 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 CMD CD CEOD

19 Fig. 3. Mean ±SE of mass gained by blocks. Each block contains three skinks. Block one has the shortest snout vent length and block 12 has the longest. Half of each skink tail was removed and mass was measured after nine weeks. Refer to appendices.

Mass Gained (g) 20 9 p=0.031 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Size Block

21 Fig. 4. Mean ±SE of mass gained per treatment. Each treatment contained 12 skinks. Half of each skink tail was removed and mass was measured after nine weeks. Treatment labels are as follows, CMD= Crickets Mealworm Larvae Daily, CD= Crickets Daily, CEOD= Crickets Every Other Day.

Mass Gained (g) 22 8 p=0.000 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 CMD CD CEOD

23 Fig. 5. Mean ±SE of snout vent length growth by treatment. Each treatment had 12 skinks. Half of each skink tail was removed and snout vent length was measured after nine weeks. Treatment labels are as follows, CMD= Crickets Mealworm Larvae Daily, CD= Crickets Daily, CEOD= Crickets Every Other Day.

Snout Vent Length Growth (mm) 24 9 p=0.285 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 CMD CD CEOD

25 Fig. 6. Mean ±SE of snout vent length growth of smallest and largest size class blocks. Each block contains three skinks. Block one has the shortest snout vent length and block 12 has the longest. Blocks 10 and 12 had no growth in snout vent length. Half of each skink tail was removed and snout vent length growth was measured after nine weeks. Refer to appendices.

Snout Vent Length Growth (mm) 26 12 p=0.000 10 8 6 4 2 0 1 2 3 10 11 12 Smallest Size Blocks Largest Size Blocks

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33 Appendix A. Raw data collected for all skinks used in this study. The initial data included body lengths (S-V is snout to vent), body mass before and after caudal autotomy, and autotomized tail mass and length. The final data includes body and tail lengths, body mass, and tail regrowth. Initial Final Skink Total Body Length (mm) S-V Length (mm) Tail Length (mm) Total Mass Before (g) Tail Mass Dropped (g) Total Mass After( g) Tail Length Dropped (mm) Total Body Length (mm) S-V Length (mm) Regrown Tail Length (mm) Total Tail Length (mm) Mass (g) 2 177 70 107 9.80 1.00 8.80 71 167 83 35 84 17.38 3 255 98 157 26.91 2.11 24.80 96 188 102 19 86 26.31 4 162 77 85 10.94 0.51 10.43 51 145 79 24 66 15.58 5 179 74 105 9.57 0.35 9.22 47 174 79 26 95 15.16 6 171 71 100 8.52 0.36 8.16 48 153 71 23 82 11.65 7 164 68 96 7.81 0.37 7.44 53 155 76 29 79 10.14 8 165 66 99 6.48 0.22 6.26 47 165 78 11 87 15.32 10 231 92 139 20.72 1.01 19.71 68 205 97 33 108 25.97 11 211 90 121 19.46 1.02 18.44 65 186 94 35 92 21.47 12 169 90 79 14.05 0.33 13.72 44 156 92 24 64 19.07 13 180 72 108 9.75 0.75 9.00 72 163 80 32 83 15.25 14 194 78 116 11.45 0.84 10.61 70 175 88 34 87 17.43 15 188 76 112 11.35 1.06 10.29 73 158 79 36 79 12.98 16 210 87 123 14.77 0.77 14.00 68 163 87 16 76 17.50 17 206 104 102 26.05 1.58 24.47 52 185 104 22 81 30.49 18 215 101 114 27.36 0.50 26.86 43 196 105 21 91 29.92 19 160 96 64 24.57 1.17 23.40 25 169 103 26 66 29.71

34 Initial Final Skink Total Body Length (mm) S-V Length (mm) Tail Length (mm) Total Mass Before (g) Tail Mass Dropped (g) Total Mass After( g) Tail Length Dropped (mm) Total Body Length (mm) S-V Length (mm) Regrown Tail Length (mm) Total Tail Length (mm) Mass (g) 20 182 98 84 20.46 0.64 19.82 42 174 103 24 71 27.22 21 198 75 123 12.44 1.97 10.47 99 163 85 48 78 17.76 22 240 114 126 36.02 2.38 33.64 69 189 114 21 75 32.63 23 241 111 130 40.40 2.76 37.64 79 203 111 31 92 40.37 24 223 100 123 24.66 1.46 23.20 64 183 100 17 83 28.37 25 233 96 137 19.03 0.63 18.40 58 195 96 16 99 22.75 26 224 98 126 21.63 1.69 19.94 74 199 124 18 75 18.62 27 232 109 123 34.59 1.15 33.44 53 204 109 26 95 34.84 28 250 104 146 26.53 1.76 24.77 78 198 104 26 94 25.39 29 194 92 102 19.50 1.80 17.70 69 154 93 27 61 19.42 30 258 114 144 43.70 2.70 41.00 80 205 114 24 91 42.10 31 276 111 165 35.08 2.04 33.04 90 214 111 26 103 40.46 32 207 108 99 28.26 1.39 26.87 63 148 109 3 39 33.20 33 242 101 141 27.38 1.36 26.02 69 195 105 19 90 27.44 34 255 101 154 26.14 1.77 24.37 89 197 101 28 96 25.84 35 224 88 136 16.98 1.42 15.56 85 185 97 35 88 23.23 36 249 95 154 24.57 1.42 23.15 88 209 107 35 102 27.03 37 195 79 116 13.08 0.60 12.48 62 179 83 34 96 14.73 38 167 69 98 7.45 0.42 7.03 55 154 74 24 80 12.76

35 Appendix B. Experimental setup of the skink specimens. Each skink was separated into size blocks. Blocks were ranked by snout to vent length, in which there is no greater than 3mm difference between the skinks in each block. Each block has a single skink from each treatment. The number in the treatment section represents the skink that was placed into that block. Raw data, including snout to vent lengths and skink numbers, can be located in Appendix A. The treatments are labeled as follows, CD=Crickets Daily, CEOD=Crickets Every Other Day, and CMD=Cricket, Mealworm Larvae Diet. Treatment Size Block CD CEOD CMD 1 8 7 38 2 2 6 13 3 21 15 5 4 14 37 4 5 35 11 16 6 10 29 12 7 19 25 36 8 20 26 3 9 18 33 24 10 17 28 34 11 32 27 23 12 31 22 30

I, Ashley Danielle Messner, hereby submit this thesis/report to Emporia State University as partial fulfillment of the requirements for an advanced degree. I agree that the Library of the University may make it available to use in accordance with its regulations governing materials of this type. I further agree that quoting, photocopying, digitizing or other reproduction of this document is allowed for private study, scholarship (including teaching) and research purposes of a nonprofit nature. No copying which involves potential financial gain will be allowed without written permission of the author. I also agree to permit the Graduate School of Emporia State University to digitize and place this thesis in the ESU institutional repository. Signature of Author Date Energy allocation after caudal autotomy in the Great Plains Skink, Plestiodon obsoletus Title of Thesis Signature of Graduate School Staff Date Received